Cafe Russia (Luciya) - Harbin Restaurant Review

I was looking forward to returning to Harbin, not only to see the amazing Snow and Ice World, but to eat some delicious Russian food.  Harbin's unique history has left behind numerous Russian restaurants, some of which are still run by Russian families. I happened to find an amazing Russian restaurant last time I visited the city, and I sure wish that I would have grabbed a business card before I left.

Cafe Russia, Luciya 露西亚西餐厅 (located near the old Flood Control Monument off of Zhongyang Dajie), was the worst part of our recent trip to Harbin. I've grown accustomed to poor service in restaurants in China, but this place set a new record for poor service and incompetence, and I must be a glutton for punishment since I went two days in a row.

My first visit to the restaurant was the better of the two trips. The staff seemed friendly enough and they took our order as soon as we got in. The restaurant didn't seem too busy at the time we got there but it took over 90 minutes to get all of our food.  The dishes we ordered came out one at a time (not unusual in China as Chinese people typically share every dish family style) but one of the people I was with didn't get her food until the end.

None of the dishes we ordered were anything to write home about, but at least they were warm.  Our second visit, however, was absolutely terrible. The only reason we stopped there again was that half of our group was heading back to the airport to catch a flight back to Shanghai, and the restaurant was right next to where we happened to be.

We told the staff that we wanted the food for our friends that were going to be heading to the airport, and to bring the other half of the group's last.  They did the opposite. Our food also took much, much longer to come.  One of my friends ordered a pasta dish, and after about an hour and a half, they told us that thy didn't have the ingredients to make it.  She then had to order a soup instead, which took another 45 minutes to show up. 45 minutes!!! For soup!!! There were loads of people that came in after us, got their food, and left. Maybe this place doesn't like foreigners.

Regarding the food, I figured I'd share a few of the dishes that we ordered, and what we actually got:

What we ordered                                                                                       What we received
Russian Black Bread                                                                                 Regular wheat bread
"Traditional Caesar Salad"                                               Plate with shrimp, sliced bread, and coleslaw
Vegetable Salad                                                                                         Coleslaw 

When we complained to the manager at the end he said they were too busy and the best he could do was offer us a 5% discount. Do yourself a favor and avoid this place at all costs!! Sorry there aren't any pictures to accompany this post. Was too upset to think about it.

Rating:

Price: $$

Value: 1/5
Taste: 1/5

Service: 0.5/5

Selection: 1/5

The Coffee Shop - Zhouzhuang Restaurant Review

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Food choices in Zhouzhuang are quite limited in their diversity, and unless you are looking for seafood and local cuisine, there really isn’t much you can do.  Fortunately for Westerners who are weary to eat at restaurants that don’t tend to place a high priority on sanitation, there is the Coffee Shop.

I have always been a bit hesitant eating in Zhouzhuang after my first encounter with food there back in 2009. After wandering around scoping out the various restaurants my friends and I picked the one that we felt might be the safest to eat at (I couldn’t have been more wrong). After getting some pretty nasty food poisoning (which ruined my last day of vacation in Shanghai) I vowed never to eat in Zhouzhuang again, opting to bring snacks with me for every subsequent day trip to the village.

On my last visit however, I decided to stay overnight for the first time. I’ve heard so many wonderful things about Zhouzhuang at night which is impossible to experience unless you have your own car (or hire one) as the tourist buses all head back for Shanghai in the late afternoon. This being the case, I decided to give Zhouzhuang’s culinary offering one more try.

After checking in at our hostel, the Longxing Inn, we walked around the main commercial street to check out some restaurants.  Not far from the hostel we found the Coffee Shop which had advertisements for pizza and other western foods.  The outside of the hostel is beautifully decorated and inviting (the little window sill is pretty awesome).  After walking inside the main entrance I immediately fell in love with the place.

The lobby is very reminiscent of the trendy hostels I’ve managed to find all over the country.  Next to the entrance is a notice board with leaflets and fliers from other awesome hostels in other parts of the country (definitely worth looking into if you’ll be traveling around and are looking for cool places to stay on a budget). The restaurant and bar are open, comfortable, and tastefully decorated.  This is an awesome place to hang out!  The most coveted place in the restaurant is a table with 2 very comfortable couches and is situated at a large window looking into their small, yet beautiful, courtyard.

The menus, which are black construction paper, folded accordion style, with neon and white crayon writing (a perfect fit for the trendy atmosphere) are pretty cool as well.  They don’t have an incredibly large selection though, just a few sandwiches, pizzas, pastas, breakfast choices, and a few Chinese dishes.  I opted to try one of their pizzas (which ran about 35 RMB) and my wife tried the grilled ham and cheese sandwich (about 25 RMB).

The pizza, which was your standard 9 inches, size wasn’t that bad. It wasn’t the best pizza I’ve had, but given the location, definitely worth the money.  I ordered the Hawaiian pizza which had your standard ham and pineapple on it, but also had corn on it too.  It took a little getting used to, but once I got over it, it was actually quite good. The cheese and the sauce were a tad disappointing however.  The cheese wasn’t the best quality and was quite rubbery and bland, but what am I supposed to expect for 35 RMB?

The sandwich was pretty disappointing though. The sandwich should have been called “warmed up ham on bread with a slice of cheese and salad dressing on it.”  We were expecting a traditional grilled cheese sandwich with ham inside for added deliciousness.  The salad dressing definitely didn’t help the situation either.  Definitely avoid this sandwich!

What I loved about this place was just how "at home" I felt while there. The service is well above your typical Chinese restaurant. The staff is all very friendly and if you can speak the language, are always happy to chat with.  The hostel also has 2 very friendly dogs that live on the premises and will roam around the hostel and restaurant adding to that homely feel.

The restaurant also has a full bar and offers a variety of mixed beverages, local beer, juices, and sodas.  The restaurant can get quite busy during the peak lunch period (between 11:00 am and 1:30pm) but was almost empty in the evening.  This is the perfect place to wind down and throw back a cold one after a long day of exploring the village.  Highly recommended!

Rating:

Price: $

Value: 3.5/5
Taste: 3/5

Service: 4/5

Selection: 2.5/5

How to get there:

I can’t seem to find an address for the restaurant so starting from the Longxing Inn Hostel which is at 80 Beishi Jie, walk north along Beishi Jie (stay on the same side as the hostel) until you come across the Coffee Shop. It should be about 50 meters or so away from Longxing Inn.

**The Coffee Shop is actually a hostel as well, and this review is simply for the restaurant contained inside as I have not personally stayed overnight in one of their rooms.

Din Tai Fung - Shanghai Restaurant Review

"Patiently" Awaiting My Feast

If you are visiting Shanghai and looking to taste some of the local delicacies, xiaolong bao (a type of dumpling) should definitely be on your checklist of things to eat.  This delectable dish has long been a favorite of locals and expats alike, and most people agree that the best in the city can be found at Din Tai Fung.

There are 7 branches scattered throughout Shanghai, and this review is for the Xin Tian Di location.  The restaurant is located on the second story of a high end shopping mall in the famous Xin Tian Di area. Xin Tian Di is a very high end district and has long been a popular place for expats and some of the more affluent locals.  There are plenty of high end boutiques and shops to visit in the area surrounding the restaurant so it makes for a nice way to spend an afternoon.

As far as Chinese restaurants are concerned this is definitely up-scale.  The decorations, booths, and the staff attire all help create a warm and pleasant atmosphere.  The walls are all covered with murals of famous Chinese actors and musicians with their autographs (not sure if they are real).  The main part of the restaurant has a very open feel and the kitchen wall that separates the dining area and the kitchen is a giant window. Feel free to spend a few minutes watching the chefs prepare your meal after you’ve ordered.

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Beautiful Presentation

The menu is pretty large and the prices high (I can imagine rent in this area is off the charts), but the scrumptiousness of the food certainly makes up for it.  There are loads of different dumplings (all of which are steamed) to choose from all filled with various toppings.  You can also get soups, fried rice, and dessert. 

We chose the standard pork xiaolong bao, the mini xiaolong bao, the truffle xiaolong bao, a bowl of wonton soup, Pork and glutinous rice shao-mai, cooked sugar pea shoots, and chilled coconut milk with assorted fresh fruit for dessert. It wasn’t a long wait before the first dishes started to arrive, presented in the bamboo steamers they were cooked in. I couldn’t wait to try the dish that the restaurant became famous for, the pork xiaolong bao.

They were simply amazing! The beauty of the xiaolong bao is that it’s shape, and the fact that it is sealed, doesn’t allow any of the juices to escape, thus retaining the flavor of the meat.  Each dumpling explodes in your mouth giving your tongue a bath in delicious pork juices. I personally felt the flavor of the dumpling by itself was enough, but if you wish you can dip them in soy sauce, black vinegar, spicy chili-paste, or any combination you can cook up.

Pork Xiaolong Bao

The only bad part of this dish is that it only came with 5 (you can order the larger portion which comes with 10), which of course I had to share. This is why I’m glad I ordered the mini xiao long bao.  They taste just as amazing as their larger counterparts and go perfect in the wonton soup.  The soup is a clean chicken broth and the delicious pork wontons perfectly absorb the broth. 

Then came the glutinous rice and pork shao-mai, the cooked sugar pea shoots, and the truffle and pork xiao long bao.  The vegetables were pretty good but a bit oily so if you are looking for something a bit lighter you might be better off trying something else. The truffle and pork xiaolong bao were very good but extremely rich.  My wife doesn’t like truffle so I had to tackle the whole dish. Normally I wouldn’t complain about this but they were too rich, even for my tastes.  If you absolutely love truffle you will probably have no problem downing the entire order, but I was only able to eat a couple of them.

We Got Dumplings for Days!

The glutinous rice and pork shao-mai was the only dish I didn’t care for on this particular visit.  They were bland and dry, which is a stark contrast to the juicy flavorful xiaolong bao.  Maybe they weren’t cooked properly, as I’ve never had shao-mai before, but I know I will not be ordering them again at this restaurant.

For dessert we shared a bowl of chilled coconut milk with a variety of fresh fruit. This was a splendid way to finish the meal.  The sweet creamy coconut milk was a nice refreshing treat, and can be an excellent way to cool down in the extreme heat that Shanghai has during the summer.

Overall I was extremely satisfied with the meal, even though it commanded a much higher price than your average Chinese food restaurant in Shanghai.  If you’ve never had xiaolong bao before and are looking to give it a try, why not go for the best.  The staff was extremely friendly and the service was superb! I highly recommend Din Tai Fung! Check Din Tai Fung’s website for locations and hours of operation.

Rating:

Price: $$$

Value: 3/5

Taste: 4.5/5

Service: 4/5

Selection: 3/5

Big Bamboo - Shanghai Restaurant Review

Located on Hong Feng Road in Pudong, Big Bamboo is a favorite hangout for locals and expats alike.  Founded over 7 years ago, Big Bambo's friendly atmosphere and familiar design will offer the many expats who live and work in the area a brief glimpse of what life back home was like.

The menu offers a wide variety of foods from burgers and sandwiches to Tex-Mex favorites like chimichangas and enchiladas. For those looking for a nice place to hangout with friends or family, Big Bamboo offers 2 pool tables as well.

The food is pretty expensive when compared to local Chinese cuisine, but is pretty comparable to other Western restaurants.  Prices range from 50 RMB for Appetizers to over 130 RMB for entrees.  Drinks range from 30 RMB (for a glass of soda) to 50RMB for cocktails and other mixed drinks.

On this particular visit we tried the chimichangas with shredded chicken, the New England clam chowder, and chicken tenders.  The chimichangas included a side of re fried beans, mexican rice, and sour cream.  The chimichanga was absolutely delicious. The chicken was succulent and spicy, and the flaky tortilla crust added a welcome crunch.  The sides however left much to be desired.  The beans were sour (a first for me) and the rice was pretty bland. 

The clam chowder was pretty tasty too, although if you're looking for the taste of the authentic New England variety you will be disappointed.  The soup was hearty with plenty of clams and potatoes, but not worth the 50 RMB price tag.

Our last dish, the chicken tenders (more like small strips of chicken that have been breaded and fried) was the least impressive of the dishes.  The chicken strips, which were more like fries, were tough and dry.  The "honey mustard" dipping sauce was nothing more than honey didn't save the dish and at 45 RMB, was a total waste of money.

The service was slightly above what you would find in a typical Chinese restaurant but well below what Westerners are accustomed to back home.  The waitresses only came by to take our order and bring the food.

I have had other dishes from this restaurant and have really enjoyed them (particularly the burgers) but it seems that consistency might be an issue here.  If you really want a taste of home, you might be better off at Blue Frog.

Price: $$$
Service: 1.5/5
Selection: 3.5/5
Taste: 3/5
Value: 3.5/5

Address (Chinese): 红枫路 381号
Address (English): 381 hongfeng lu